Christoforos Papakaliatis talks about "Maestro in Blue" on Netflix - "In The Spotlight" with Yanna

[Music] [Music] thank you thank you [Music] hello everyone and welcome back to in the spotlight today we have the honor of having with us a a maestro uh himself uh Christophers who is very talented a filmmaker director actor writer producer he's a triple threat quadruple threat actually a quadruple blessing actually uh for all producers because you do wonderful work you've you've really um have proven yourself in in every role and we're very proud that you are the first Greek television series to have made a deal with Netflix worldwide with Maestro Maestro and blue AKA yeah we call it Maestro blue AK because it's called Meister in Greece and meister and blue and white yeah yeah Welcome to New York thank you so much for having me and of course I want to add to everything that you said that if it wasn't for Mega Channel which is the the real producer and the whole network and first production stereos cocciones which he is the executive producer of the show nothing would have happened I mean I know I wrote it I directed it I I did everything on it but if it wasn't for these people I wouldn't be here absolutely and we are all ecstatic about it and when we heard about it I think everyone wanted to watch it on Mega yeah which is doing wonderful things congratulations to Mega Channel and of course first Productions which is amazing yes they're a great team and they have they do very very very good Productions for all of you who don't know this christopheros is mother is from South Africa tell us a little bit about your background well my mother she was raised in Rhodesia back then which is Zimbabwe now uh of course her parents are Greek her family is Greek but they went there and they stayed for 25 30 years nearly right now my cousins and the half family still in Cape Town yeah so my father's Greek and he's from Crete and they met and then my mother came to Greece and she stayed and she gave birth to me and brother Philip beautiful beautiful and you have ties with paksus of course because my great-grandmothers from paxus and we always used to go to paxos for uh for for the August every every every summer for a month we used to go at the Yaya's house yeah it is an amazing Island and of course and where your story takes place and and one of the most important asset of the show is the background of the island and of course nothing would have happened if we didn't have all these people helping us yes because the people the the the the the locals in parxos they they work like crazy helping us and supporting us and doing everything we're all very excited to see the series abroad because Greece has seen it so it launches on Netflix March 17 2020 three everyone get on you know watch it it's an amazing television series um you focus on society and problems of society and relationships that's what you're what really inspires you you know this from your past work and on which was impeccable tell us a little bit about this television series look for me writing a script it's very difficult to write something and disregard the reality around me so always the reality and things that happening around me are inspiring is inspiring for me and this one takes place during the pandemic this one takes place during the pandemic but after the lockdown so when things were starting being you know a little bit nicer an aunt took place a post-greek economic crisis yes and then wolves apart was in the middle of the economic crisis yeah Yes actually the the my scripts they do have a social yes which is very fascinating because everyone can relate to what was going on during that time yeah it's because I ca because I have to relate in order to write something it's because I am the first viewer of the show or of the movie so in order for me to sit in the night and write my script I have to I have to be inspired by everything that's happening around me even if things are very very cruel and very difficult so tell us about the inspiration of this always always I'm trying to be optimistic always because that's my nature I'm trying to be SEO auduction as we say and all my stories and characters and everything they all even if it's the most let's say dark period of something um they always have in a way they go to the light and choices are a result of positive things of course yeah yeah so tell us about this inspiration about Maestro in blue Maestro was basically it started as a love story not only one love story many love stories in an island but as I was writing it I realized that it has much more serious issues that you can see things are happening and this it's about a musician who visits an island in order to create a music festival and suddenly of course he falls in love with the girl she's absolutely gorgeous I think the whole cast is yes the whole cast is wonderful yeah yeah but this goes very special it's the first time we kind of see her yes yes she makes a debut her debut is on Western blue yeah and she's she captures the screen yeah yeah she's magnificent but um all the issues of the script issues I mean can I say it in Greek this is a gringlish we we speak both so the Greek Americans and Greek Australians and we all speak you know feel free I think it he makes a very good point that the issues that he's he's really tackling in this script are about what's really going on in society today which are a lot of issues against uh uh you know things that women are facing uh uh abuse abuse domestic violence domestic violence of which all of these issues are going on today and there are issues that we really have to uh you know come face to face with yeah and we have to overcome and as a society we have to learn to love and accept each other because doing that together we do greater things and not to avoid not to denial the reality and what's happening around us but denial is are the biggest issue and it's an individual yeah there is an episode episode number two the title of the episode is denial yeah yeah so tell us about the characters ah there are so many many characters 10 characters uh five different love stories exactly it's crazy that's your specialty yes yes I love love stories you know love stories are like like a vehicle in order to communicate something uh through a love story but behind the Love Story hides all the social uh backdrop of a story in reality reality exactly and it's about this guy who visits the island and he gets involved with everything of course we see Maria cavallani she is amazing she's she's the the victim of the domestic violence we see the Love Story between orestes and Clea which is the main story we see we see many many different love stories I mean they're going to watch it they're going to realize what I'm talking about and it unfolds beautifully and surprisingly a lot of surprises yes yes it is very intense twists a lot of twists yeah and so you know they say that the Greeks you know Greece has evolved and Greece is is very modern it's a European country of which things have evolved for Greece a lot of the Greeks that left throughout the different phases of migration that date back to the 1920s yeah and before that a lot of these families have remained with a Nostalgia and a an image of Greece as it was in the 50s or the 60s I speak truly as a Greek or morganis right now and I know because I I grew up in a community that has a different uh um you know an older Greek mentality yeah how do you think they will view modern Greece and do you think that these are things that have always been going on I think that there are things that have always been going on yes exactly and also I think that in this story and an old kind of stories regarding Greeks uh what we're trying to to keep is the identity of course things evolve they change but some things never change because they're human that's why because all my stories what I wanna all the stories I want to to to to to to tell are that they have to do with about humans about relationships it's everything sentimental so this kind of things I don't think they change the human element is very important and of course and if you if you take it to paxos which paxos hadn't changed that much the last 20-25 years let's say for those of you have not been to buxus it is an absolute Kukla yeah Greek it is a gorgeous sophisticated Island yes it is it is but it has kept its identity I mean it has kept the buildings the green the nature the sea everything is of course it evolves of course but it it it's very authentic and for those of those of you who have not been I'm sure after watching this TV series which is just breathtaking the scenery you will travel to paksus and experience a real Greek island yeah and of course they must be very grateful for that I'm grateful to them because they they if it wasn't for these people I wouldn't I wouldn't be here yeah so an important element and again you want the audience to see reality and learn something through this is what ancient Greek Theater was doing this is what stories do right not only me I mean all the stories we we tell a story in order to say some things or to make some questions yes uh to see yourself exactly exactly all the things that uh the most important thing is that you manage to be the first to have a worldwide platform on one of the the biggest streaming platforms on Netflix how easy is it for Greek Greek directors writers actors to accomplish this how easy was it for you I don't it's never easy first of all uh I think I was lucky as well I was lucky to work with people who who helped and who supported a lot what we wanted to do and they watched it on Netflix and they called us back and they said we want to watch the first four episodes they just watched the trailer and I think it was in cams when they watched it and we said okay sure we can give you the first four episodes and when they watched them yeah they called us back and they say we think that this is an international story this is a story that has the identity the Greek identity which we like because it's a Greek show and let's talk about having it on Netflix and we were very very excited all of us me first because I was working for it for this I mean I I knew that I was creating a show that's what I wanted uh uh to travel around the world like I did with the movies because after the movies I was supposed to do my third movie then the lockdown came and covered and everything so there were there was no Cinema uh so I decided to do Maestro I did the show and I wrote it knowing that in a way my big dream was for a Greek TV show to be all around the world and I hope I succeeded well you you happen to manifest everything that you put your mind to yeah yeah and you do it very well and you're are you a perfectionist yes how are you yes your role as a director yes oh I'm I'm I'm okay I'm I mean I never fight with anybody but I'm a perfectionist yes I know exactly what I want to do and when I don't know I'm very stressful laughs I never sleep I never sleep yes but I always know I always know what I want because you know what when you write the story in the script if you if you read the script my script of mine you're gonna see that uh the whole direction is there so you began as an actor and you've and many many years and yes of course and you transitioned into of course a director a screenwriter screenwriter and then a director and a producer of course really exactly it comes with it because I know the places and I knew paxos I knew the people I knew I knew I know how to tell the story and how to build the story so I'm a producer in that way creative producer of course exactly yeah what role represents you the best and what role you're more comfortable in writer yep yeah I've been doing the acting thing about 30 years now I love it it's a part of my nature but if I had to choose it would be the writing because it's something so so personal and it's something that I do every night when I go back home for myself and I used to do it since I was 12 years old something like that did you always know you wanted to be in this industry yes always when I think it was in kriti when I was four years old not even four because we left when I was four and my mother took me to a theater and I remember that day I remember that moment that I was sitting on a lap and I was watching the show and I remember me thinking that this is what I want in my life I was so so happy yep well that's that's beautiful yeah and I remember it and it's great that your parents supported you in in an industry of course I was very lucky that I had the family that I have because they supported me because they were they never you know they never said no uh of course at the beginning they were not very excited because we thought you could be a doctor I was supposed to go to the family business down in Crete hotels and everything the tourism but uh I started walking when I was 15 15 and a half I was going to school and I was off to to Mega back then it was the first year of Mega and I was you know I did the auditions and everything nobody knew about it and when I was when they they told me that yes you can come here and I said okay now I have to tell my parents because I was underage they had to sign so uh yeah guess what I just got the casted exactly that's what happened yeah you see if it's meant to be it's meant to be yeah he is a star he was born a star um but you're very talented I'm sure everybody agrees with me and everybody who's seen Christopher's work thank you agrees that the man has a talent in all of these roles how easy is it to make film and TV series in Greece in comparison to other European countries it never was easy we do have a lot of talent in Greece but what we lack what we don't have is uh the way to organize and the way to promote and the way to communicate things this is the only thing because Greece is a very distribution you mean it's getting wise exactly because Greece is a very small country yes the history in Greece we never we never had a big view mechanism moving the country but with great things yes but we didn't we never had a movie industry but oh but we did Tino's film was a wonderful that was the last that was the exact decade exactly so Greece is now coming back Greece hasn't said hopefully tell me a little bit about what the government is doing to incentivize Productions in Greece if we didn't have the incentives Maestro wouldn't be able to do we wouldn't be able with a budget like that uh to create the show first of all not only for us for everyone the incentives and of course for all the foreigners to come and visit the country and shoot movies in Greece because Greece is a movie set Greece is a movie set in its own you do not need sets you you have this light you have this light the natural light that Greece has which is it's very unique very unique in the directors of Photography are very unique in Greece yep we have many wonderful Greek directors of Photography gabras Etc so so many fabulous filmmakers and television series makers film has now become a TV series making yeah how how easy is it to make little films now as a writer and a director it's not easy at all believe me because I remember on my previous movie I had a 200 Pages script a movie two hours and I had two years to create a movie now I had one year and a half to create nine movies or a nine hour movie and there's gonna be more so there's a second season coming there's the second season coming I wrote the first four episodes and we start next month shooting uh yeah we start production next month so Fox News very special too because your grandmother's from paksus you're doing you're doing for tourism and for for Greece in general you represent Greece yeah uh do you think that Greeks have what it takes to be abroad as as a worldwide filmmakers uh yes especially the young ones I mean it's things evolve things change and uh always Greece had its way in creating things always always always and it's I don't know if it's this the history I don't know what it is of course we have many issues many problems who doesn't yes but in a way we come around in a way we we we succeed Greek succeed when they work together and that is very important and and film is a great industry that attests to that state yes yes because you won't work we all work all of us everyone works together when somebody works together it is it is a project that everyone is succeeding everyone is winning exactly and so for the new generation and I can see it now with the show I mean all the Greek mohenia I have people calling me from Australia I have people calling me from Europe I have people called the other day they called me from Latin America I mean yeah from here everywhere yeah and of course the U.S the people here I know gri Como yenya and they were always very very supportive but you can see that the people they support immediately when they know that it's something Greek exactly they always support it they never fight it what is your message to a upcoming actors and what do you look for in actors and and how do you cast your team I always cast uh in regard of talent chemistry and character yeah I think those three elements are very very important chemistry because especially if it's TV uh Thailand which is the number one and the character always I like to work with nice people I like to work with people who who really love the the whole environment it's very important what is your message to the new generation that's watching you about pursuing they're going to do it their dream in film they're going to do it anyway because it's something that if you really love you always you always do it and keep dreaming and keep you know chasing your dreams meister and blue do not miss it on Netflix worldwide March 17 2023 we're waiting for all you to tune in and start watching the series crystal said we wish you the best of luck thank you so much congratulations thank you we're very proud of you thanks so so much for everything that you're doing for me my most pleasure and all of our uh uh uh omagena loves you and you know that and we're here to support you and keep making stories come to life with your you manifest and it's uh by the way you are the same the last time we did an interview was nearly 10 years ago you know that it was 10 years ago 10 years ago with Anne yeah another favorite of mine I'm a fan of your work and you know that but um thank you again and good luck and thank you thank you for waiting for more thank you [Music] foreign [Music]

Channel: New Greek TV Inc. NGTV

Views: 53,391

Keywords: NewGreekTV, NGTV, Maestro, Papakaliatis, YannaDarilis, Μαεστρο, ΓιανναΝταριλη, Παπακαλιάτης, ΧριστόφοροςΠαπακαλιάτης, Ελλάδα, Greece, Greektourism, Paxoi, Παξοί

Id: pHXrfTjD5RI

Length: 23min 38sec (1418 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 26 2023